08.16.20 - Of Sabbath and Wisdom and Joy and Justice - Matthew 12

In this sermon we talked about the connection between wisdom and Sabbath. Wisdom means to receive instruction in order to gain prudence and discretion in all things relating to righteousness, justice, and equity (Proverbs 1). Sabbath is about joy and justice. Sabbath begins with gratitude and delight in God’s goodness and moves into the question of justice for those who don’t experience it, who suffer in this world and for whom gratitude and joy are blocked by their current circumstances. We reviewed the movement from Exodus 20 to Deuteronomy 5. This leads into the Sabbath way of life, which is not just about crashing on the couch at the end of the week but a way of life that affects everything, all moments, every relationship for the sake of joy and justice. Because Sabbath and wisdom are connected, here, we can say that this is how God intended creation to flow. God’s original intent for creation. We talked about the Pharisees pushing for controversy because they don’t get who Jesus is, as one greater than the temple, greatest of prophets, greatest of wisdom. They are not wise because they don’t see he is from God. Their words betray their foolishness, not wisdom. Those who see who Jesus is are those who do the will of God, i.e. wisdom/Sabbath.